Once More With Feeling
by Niffers
Summary: Sarah Williams thought she left the labyrinth behind 6 years ago... what happens when she has to face it once again? And what about the Goblin King? JS
1. Again?

Woo! Look, my first EVER S/J ficcie! Be gentle people, this is my first time writing the two together. Lol. Anywho, I hope you enjoy and do please review because I would love to know your thoughts! Thanks! ^_^

Disclaimer: I do not own Labyrinth or any of its characters; they indeed belong to Henson, Inc. I do however own Bryan and any character that is not in the movie unless otherwise stated. Heh.

Once More With Feeling

1. Again?

"Hey! Sarah! Sarah, Sarah, Sarah, Sarah, Sarah, Sarah…!" little 5-year old Bryan chanted as he tugged at the leg of the woman's jeans. 

Sarah Williams rolled her eyes and shoved her waist length raven hair over one shoulder as she turned to face him, "What, Bryan?" Her hazel eyes pinned the small boy to the spot for about 10 seconds before the little ball of energy bounced before her excitedly. 

"Read to us, Sarah! Read to Toby and me about the Goblins again!" Bryan grinned and clapped his small hands together and 7-year old Toby joined in with the bouncing marathon. Sarah, now 21, laughed softly and ruffled both boys' hair before crying out, "Alright, alright! I give! I will read to you two." Both boys cried out happily and raced into the living room, pouncing onto the couch and settling down eagerly as they awaited her arrival with the familiar red book they had both learned to love so well. Sarah grinned to herself and grabbed the familiar book, halting momentarily to run her hand almost lovingly over the familiar worn cover before making her way out into the living room.

She sighed as she remembered the last few years, graduating an honor student at her high school and moving out of her parent's house at the age of eighteen, of college and how she had moved into her very own apartment. She had gotten her first job at a local book store at the age of seventeen, now working at a local coffee shop, waitressing and receiving generous tips. She knew that without the little red book, she would not have turned out the way she had. Her adventure made her the person she was now and she could not bear to part with the small reminder of her triumph in adolescence, keeping it all these years and telling Toby the story over and over again. Her thoughts drifted to the Goblin King and she secretly wondered what had happened to him. Was he all right? Was he even alive? She shook herself from the train of thought as she entered the living room; both boys bouncing excitedly once they spotted the red book nestled between her hands. She smiled at Toby and then at Bryan. Bryan and his family just recently moved in next door and she recalled the day when Toby excitedly called her cell phone and told her of his new playmate, nearly talking for an hour from his excitement. The two boys immediately got along from the start and every day they played together. Sarah grinned and sat between the boys and both immediately curled up against her, eyes glued to the small book that she slowly opened and started to recite, the familiar words flowing over them as her voice softly yet passionately spoke each one.

Soon enough, the story was over and she closed the book, looking down to see both boys sound asleep against her. She looked at the clock across the room and it chimed eleven-thirty, making her smile. She carefully got up and picked a sleeping Toby up, cradling him against her as she slowly and silently made her way to his room upstairs where she laid him down on his bed, taking his shoes off and tucking him in under his blankets. She smiled and ran the back of her hand along his cheek before kissing his forehead, straightening and walking out of his room, setting the little red book on his nightstand before turning off the light and leaving the door open a crack. She grabbed a few blankets out of the upstairs closet and a pillow out of her old room, quickly moving down the stairs to make small Bryan comfortable. She sighed and went upstairs to her room, plopping down onto her old bed, her eyes closing happily as sleep slowly claimed her body. Her eyes snapped open however when she heard Toby's voice, mumbling sleepily, "I wish the goblins would come and take Bryan away…" he yawned, "Right now." She sat up quickly as a clap of thunder shook the house, the lights flickering off. Her heart sank into the pit of her stomach and only one word floated through her mind; No.

She jumped up blindly in the darkness and stumbled her way to her door and flung it open in her haste as she tore through the hallway, almost falling down the stairs as she made her way to the living room. She stopped dead in her tracks however when she saw a familiar figure dressed in black, "Jareth."

Jareth smirked at her and raised an eyebrow, "What a pleasant surprise." 

Toby ran towards Sarah and clutched her legs desperately, crying, "Sarah! I didn't mean to! It just came out!"

Sarah patted Toby's head and she glared at Jareth, yet talking to Toby, "don't worry sweetie, we'll figure something out." She pried Toby off of her, "Go back to bed, Toby…" Toby sniffled and he scurried up the stairs and out of sight. Sarah waited until she heard the sound of a door closing before facing her once-adversary fully, "Give him back, Jareth."

Jareth raised an eyebrow and absently tugged a glove, his eyes never leaving hers, "We've been through this before, Sarah." 

Sarah too raised an eyebrow and she crossed her arms over her chest, "And it looks like we shall be going through it again."

Jareth sighed and he walked towards her slowly, "Sarah… I cannot give Bryan back. One must run my labyrinth in order to regain what was rightfully taken."

Sarah watched him warily, her gaze never leaving his, "Fine. I will."

Jareth stopped walking and regarded her for a minute before he looked down at the ground, "Tell you what… Let's make a bargain, shall we?" He smiled a wolfish grin and Sarah almost took a step backward, "You will have thirteen hours once again to reach the castle beyond the Goblin City. If you win, I will send both you and Bryan back without a second thought. If I win, " His smile widened, "I will send Bryan back, but you must stay with me."

Sarah thought it over in her mind before she nodded, "Fine. But no cheating." She raised an eyebrow at him and Jareth chuckled, their surroundings slowly fading into the picturesque scenery that was the Underground. Sarah looked around and realized in slight dismay that they were indeed standing upon the very same hill from all those years ago and her eyes automatically strayed towards the massive structure laying before her feet in all it's pre-dawn glory.

Jareth moved up behind her and murmured into her ear, "Remember, princess. Thirteen hours before you are mine." 

Sarah jumped slightly and she rolled her eyes, snorting in obvious amusement, "Dream on, Goblin King." She sighed, crossing her arms over her chest once again, "You're not gone yet?"

Jareth smirked that devilish smirk of his as he arched an eyebrow, "You may not like the circumstances but I do believe you have no choice in the matter now." He chuckled and brushed a few errant locks away from her neck from behind before lightly kissing the skin just below her right ear. He murmured, "Happy hunting…" before disappearing into thin air. Sarah shivered as the cool morning breeze surrounded her body and she pulled her arms closer to her body before turning to face her newest and oldest challenge. 

The sunlight slowly crept a path fully over the labyrinth, bathing it with its light and causing the labyrinth to glow slightly in the dawn, the labyrinth itself stretching for miles and miles, as far as the eye can see into the distance. Sarah squinted as her eyes roamed over the ancient structure and she raised an eyebrow, "Oh good, I thought this was going to be easy." She rolled her eyes and looked down at the hill she was on, "Well, I suppose I should get moving…" She smirked, "Come on, feet!" She snickered before trudging off down the hill towards the outer wall of the labyrinth.

Her entire body skidded to a complete halt as she craned her head back to look up the massive wall standing before her. Her eyebrows rose in slight surprise as she put her hands on her hips, her head moving now to look both ways. An eyebrow rose once again as she sighed softly, "Like the Energizer Bunny… It just keeps going and going and going…" She thought to herself, 'Maybe if I walk along the never-ending wall, I'll find a door?' She shrugged to herself, "Might as well…" She turned left and started jogging at a slow pace, her bell sleeves fluttering behind her slightly and her long raven hair bouncing behind her. She eventually slowed to a walk and she dramatically called out, "A door, a door! My kingdom for a door!" she grinned and to her surprise the wall right next to her cracked and slid inwards, letting her in. She peered at it cautiously, raising a skeptical eyebrow, "Creepy…" before she slowly ventured her way inside. The wall immediately slammed shut behind her and she jumped about a foot in the air in surprise before clutching her shirt right above her heart and mumbling, "Yeah, ha ha so funny!" She started walking to the left, still mumbling, "Yes! Let's give the poor girl a premature heart attack before her quest is over! Oh, such fun!" she clapped her hands sarcastically together before she stopped, turning to face the way she just came, "Wait a second…" She turned back around, "This doesn't seem right…" she put a hand on her left hip and brought the other one to her mouth, covering it in thought, "Hmm… Which way, which way…" She looked at the wall to her right warily as if she were afraid it might grow teeth and bite her, and then she looked to the ground. Her eyes lit up as she saw a sort of heavy-duty vine growing up the side of the wall and she looked around cautiously before grabbing it, testing its durability before slowly heaving herself up onto the wall, no longer touching the ground. She looked around herself as she climbed, her face scrunching up slightly in amusement, "I feel like a monkey, climbing up this thing the way I am…" She slowly pulled herself up to the top and she found parts of stone that stuck out, providing convenient footholds the entire way up and she climbed up onto the top of the wall, sitting on it with legs on both sides of the wall. 

She looked out towards the castle and she sighed, "I'm coming, Bryan." She hoisted herself up onto her feet, thankful of her previous years in gymnastics, finding her balance easily. She looked at the wall seven feet away, running parallel to the one she was currently perched on and took a deep breath before jumping onto it, landing awkwardly but quickly regaining her balance. She smirked, looking down at the ground far below, almost laughing, "One small leap for man; one giant leap for freedom." She shook her head at herself and quickly moved down the wall, continuing the Leap For Freedom for some time until she finally ran out of wall. She looked at the hedge maze stretched out before her and she pouted, "Well, it was fun while it lasted." And she looked around for a way down, frowning when she saw no opportunities and she huffed, "Well this simply won't do…" She finally spotted a dead tree a few paces back and her eyes lit up as a smile slowly appeared on her face, "I saw a tree and its name was BINGO!" She skipped her way down to the tree, stopping just before it and reaching out towards it before she swung onto it like the monkey that she was and easily climbing down. She raised an eyebrow at the tree and looked all around her suspiciously, "This is just way too easy…" She sighed and then turned to walk the way she came when she jumped a few feet into the air in slight shock and surprise mixed together, "Jiminy! Put a bell around your neck for pity's sake!" She breathed, glaring at the familiar form that leaned against the wall so casually.

Jareth chuckled and pushed off from the wall, slowly sauntering his way towards her and pouting slightly, "And miss the chance to surprise you? Why, that thought is absolutely out of the question." He circled her slowly like a predator to its prey and Sarah watched him from the corner of both eyes, not one muscle moving in her body, other than her eyes. 

She raised an eyebrow as she crossed her arms over her chest defensively, "What do you want, Jareth?"

Jareth smirked and raised an eyebrow in return, "Merely wanted to see how my heroine is withstanding my magnificent labyrinth…" He looked around at the hedge walls, "Judging by our surroundings, it seems that you are indeed doing very well." He arched an eyebrow in slight amusement and Sarah looked at him warily, not trusting that look he was giving her one bit. He moved closer to her and she took an involuntary step back, her eyes widening as his arm managed to snake its way about her waist, a small squeak of protest trying to escape her throat as he pulled her closer to him. Her hands automatically pushed against his chest as she practically bent backwards over his arm to avoid contact with him. He laughed, a rich velvety sound that escaped his lips as he leaned over her, amusement dancing within his mismatched gaze, "I do so enjoy our time together. Do you not, my sweet?" Sarah fervently shook her head no as the small little nagging voice inside of her screamed, "YES!"  He arched a delicately shaped eyebrow, his smile still remaining on his lips, "No? My dear, it seems to me that you may be lying…" His free hand, blessedly devoid of its usual soft leather encasing, drifted along her cheekbones and she could not suppress the small shiver the ran through her body at his touch. Jareth chuckled and she pulled her face away a bit too late, a slight blush staining her cheeks when she realized he knew her reaction to his touch. He purred lightly in the back of his throat as he pulled her even closer and Sarah swallowed forcefully, her mouth suddenly dry, her eyes automatically seeking his out in surprise when she heard him speak again. "No…" He almost whispered, the pads of his fingers once again moving lightly over her soft skin, "You are supressing your feelings… No matter, they shall surface soon enough." He smirked before he slowly leaned in, his eyes darting from her lips to her eyes repeatedly. Sarah's eyes widened when she realized just exactly why he was leaning in and she froze to the spot, her mouth almost falling open in shock when she felt his lips just barely brush across hers. He pulled back and smiled at her, "Yes… Until later, my sweet…" He grinned and disappeared, leaving her to stumble about from the sudden absence of his warmth. Sarah breathed heavily as stars threatened to cloud her vision, her eyes darting about wildly as her currently fogged brain tried to decipher what exactly just happened.


	2. Close Encounters

A/N: WOW I updated! Amazing, no? this chapter, I'm afraid to admit, is short and not much humor. Who knows, it might not be humorous, at least not obviously anymore. You might have to search for the humor, because it's there, subtly. Anywho, enjoy and have fun!

Disclaimer: Don't own Labyrinth. NYEH.

Chapter 2: Close Encounters

Crazy; one word with such an incredible impact on the life of someone if it had been uttered within earshot of the target spoken of. Sarah, unfortunately, was quite familiar with the word and disliked it greatly. In fact, if she thought back on it, she could clearly remember her step-mother often reminding her father of just how "crazy" his daughter was, perhaps even bordering on insane. She closed her eyes, silently banishing the memories. As much as she hated the word, it oddly enough seemed fitting for the creatures she had just escaped from, hiding up in a tree in the Fiery forest, if it was even called that. She held her breath as the incredibly large furry versions of what she could only hope was a cross of dragon and hyenas ran directly beneath her hiding spot and continued down the foggy path, shouting obscenities and insults in another language, letting it out slowly after seeing them disappear within the mist. She closed her tired eyes and rested her perspiring forehead against the cool bark of the ancient gnarled tree, willing her heart to calm down so she might be able to breathe normally once again. For hours she had been running, if not to escape the dragon-hyena hybrids, then some other odd creature. Hours of running non-stop, only to find that she was barely even to the castle. She sighed in frustration, realizing a bit too late that she had found herself in a completely new part of the maze. It resembled the hedge maze, but it also seemed to have melted halfway into the Fiery Forest, as if frozen in the middle of morphing. It was certainly disorienting.

As her heart rate calmed down, she leaned over the edge of the rather large tree limb and peeked from beneath the canopy of leaves, silken tresses hanging below her as she looked about as if to make sure the coast was clear. With a large sigh of relief, she righted herself again and slowly made her way down, landing on the packed forest floor with a soft thud. She brushed her jeans off absently and looked about her, seeing three paths she might take. Finger to her bottom lip in thought, she turned slowly; inspecting each pathway, including the one she just came from. No, she thought, not that one. It might lead her back to those creatures, or worse yet, the faeries that attacked her at the pond three hours ago, just outside of the large stone maze. She scuffed the dirt beneath her shoe slightly as she chose one of the less attractive paths, debris and plants littering the ground. As she continued walking, memories began resurfacing of her last visit, and as if of their own accord, her memories drifted towards a certain Goblin King. Her brow furrowed. Nearly five hours later and she had yet to see one strand of hair on his head, let alone one of his crystals. This thought disturbed Sarah greatly, the aforementioned girl grimacing as she pulled a rather sticky spider web out of her hair, the webbing glistening with some inner light that could only be described akin to being droplets of water tied together.

As she wiped the sticky substance off onto a nearby tree, she noticed that a rather large iridescent dragonfly sort of faerie had landed on the back of her hand, preening its wings and fussing over its antennae-like hair. Whether from shock or fear, Sarah's entire body froze as the little creature turned, dancing lightly across the skin of her hand, before looking up at her and giggling. Within the blink of an eye, the little dragon-faerie flew up to meet Sarah's lips, brushing her own tiny mouth across the human's, causing Sarah to jerk back and gasp, her world suddenly spinning. Eyes shut tightly, the woman staggered backwards and her backside met up with the rough bark of a tree, her suddenly numb body sliding down to meet the dirt. The faerie merely giggled mischievously and blew Sarah a kiss before flying off, disappearing into the mist, hopefully never to be seen again. Vaguely she remembered once being in this very position before, sprawled out on the forest floor and disoriented beyond belief, but the only exception was that she had no peach this time to cause these symptoms. Stars danced before her eyes as she lazily opened them, trying in vain to focus on some sort of branch dangling before her face, only to half-realize that it was tangled in her hair. She pushed at it sluggishly and grunted lightly when she realized that it hadn't budged a single inch and she let out a breath, having to close her eyes lest she start getting nauseous from the world spinning before her very eyes.

Her entire body tingled yet she couldn't feel the wind that suddenly picked up, or the leaves idly falling into her hair from the tree above her. Was this what it felt like to die? Panic gripped her so suddenly that she tried to cry out, only resulting in a sort of gurgling sound from her vain efforts to move. Finally she gave up and fell victim to the alien sensations running through her body and a single tear trickled down her cheek, showing her sudden defeat. She didn't even hear the footsteps that approached her or the concerned voice call out to her, trying to coax a response from her. Slowly, the voice, growing more urgent by the second, drifted into her foggy consciousness, causing a spark of familiarity to flare within her mind. Brow furrowing, Sarah slowly opened her eyes, looking at a strangely familiar pair of boots not even two feet away from her. Her gaze drifted upwards slowly, over lean thighs and slim torso, before finally meeting the Goblin King's concerned gaze.

Jareth sighed as he crouched before the girl, trying to assess the situation and handle it in the best way possible. He gripped her chin and sighed in annoyance when she tried to fight him, lifting her face away from his hand and moving her head to lean back against the tree, eyes shutting tightly as her vision swam horribly, letting out a small groan. Without missing a beat, he gripped her chin again and turned it this way and that, fully looking her over. "Sarah…" She didn't respond, merely drawing her eyebrows together and pursing her lips, her hands flailing slowly about. His gaze suddenly drawn to her lips, he noticed the small blisters forming on her bottom lip, suspiciously looking very much like a small kiss. Immediately he knew what was wrong with her.

A small creature in his kingdom called the Ug-Nabiath; a malevolent little Faerie resembling a dragonfly who liked to cause nothing but mischief wherever it went, which tended to leave humans in a sort of drug-induced state from a mere kiss. Unfortunately, the species had no idea of the effect it had on humans so what was usually considered an innocent act of affection was indeed an almost fatal action to be done.

Jareth immediately summoned a crystal, sighing deeply and murmuring as he put the orb into her relaxed hand, "After all that I do for you, and you still think of me as a monster." He shook his head and mumbled a spell beneath his breath, causing the crystal to glow eerily then disappear into her skin, the spell weaving its way throughout her bloodstream to reverse the effects that the Ug-Nabiath had left behind. Five minutes later Sarah's eyes fluttered open and Jareth looked into her eyes, letting out a breath of relief when he saw them slowly clear to their natural state. Good. She was out of danger now. He leaned back on his haunches as she finally became aware of her surroundings, her eyes widening as she took in his form, and just how close he was.

Sarah stuttered, "What… What happened?"

Muwahahaha. A cliffie! Heh sorry about that folks, but I thought it best to leave their chitchat for another chapter. Review and tell me what you thought of this chapter, please? Thankies!

-Niffers


	3. Determined

A/N: Poor Sarah, it seems she always gets into trouble in this story. Oh well! I'm honestly surprised I've been able to update this ficcie so much, but I'm guessing it might die out soon. So why not use the inspiration? Heh.

Disclaimer: Don't own Labyrinth, blah blah blah. Song lyrics from Evanescence's Haunted. In fact, their fallen album was the inspiration soundtrack for this chapter.

Chapter 3: Determination

Jareth thought the question over carefully. If he told her what happened, she could easily take it the wrong way and blame him for everything that has happened to her so far on this journey and exclaim that she hated him, like she would have if she were a child. On the other hand, she could actually take it very easily and talk to him calmly, much like the adult he knew she had become. Torn, he instead chose to give her bits of information instead, carefully treading over the entire subject as he brushed a gloved finger across her blistered bottom lip with the utmost care, "You, my dear, have had a very unfortunate brush with the Ug-Nabiath. You are very lucky indeed to be alive, seeming as how the creature hasn't the faintest idea of its lethal affect on humans." The corner of his mouth twitched in amusement as her eyes widened just as predicted and he continued on smoothly, "I can only be thankful that I saved you in time before it was too late. I wouldn't want my favorite contestant to fall ill while in my Labyrinth…" He smirked, eyes sparkling mischievously.

Sarah swallowed heavily and grimaced as a sensation drifted through her entire, seeming to course through her very veins. It was that feeling of discomfort, one that she often associated with the Goblin King, seeming as how it only happened while being in his presence. She pushed the feeling away stubbornly and sat up slightly, hissing when affected muscles in her arms protested at the movement. Next thing she knew Jareth's arms were lifting her and setting her upright against the tree and she nearly gasped when she felt his hands drift carefully over her body. "Wha… What are you doing?" His gaze flickered upwards to meet her own and she swallowed when she saw amusement and… Heat? In those gorgeous mismatched eyes of his, causing her own orbs to widen slightly.

"Why, Sarah… I am merely checking for injuries, of course." His tone, albeit sounding highly amused, also held a hint of darkness to it, tainting the deep resounding timber of his voice, the very chords sounding like velvet being deliciously brushed across her skin. She shivered slightly and subconsciously pouted, causing the king to chuckle. Soon enough he pulled away and sat back on his haunches, regarding the human woman before him, eyes slightly narrowed and a thoughtful expression taking over his features, arms casually draped over his legs and hanging limply there, as if they had no feeling. On the contrary, every nerve-ending was bursting with life and tingling with such feeling that Jareth had to purse his lips slightly to control the over-bearing urge to take off his gloves and feel the softness of her skin beneath his naked touch. With a sigh he brushed a hand through his hair, causing the blonde strands to stick out in all their unruly glory, much like an untamed mane. Sarah watched the entire thing with keen eyes, the last of the effects dissipating completely, leaving her mind clear and the rest of her body. She made as if to get up and the Goblin King jumped up with the grace of a feline and casually offered his hand, his mismatched eyes looking at her calmly now, but not without a hint of the raging inferno boiling beneath the surface. Sarah eyed his hand warily; wondering if she should take it. At long last she hesitantly took hold of his hand with one of her own and with little to no effort at all he had her standing straight up. Legs a bit unsteady from the last remaining effects of the Ug-Nabiath, they immediately gave out at the slightest hint of pressure and she fell against Jareth, letting out a cry and latching onto the fabric of his poet's shirt. Jareth's arms wrapped around her waist tightly to keep her from hitting the dirt and without thinking made soothing sounds in the back of his throat, holding her close as if to ward off any demons that might attack.

Face buried in the folds of his shirt, Sarah avoided his gaze and bit her lip, wondering just how she managed to find herself in these kinds of situations with him. Maybe it was fate playing a cruel trick on her, or maybe it was just meant to be, she didn't know. The latter of the two frightened her beyond belief so with a small sigh, she gently pushed away from him, getting her footing easily and standing her own ground. Jareth's arms reluctantly dropped from being around her and the two regarded each other silently, both wanting to say something but words dying in their throats before anything could be said. Sarah was the first to break the lengthy silence lying between them when she drew in a quick breath, letting it out slowly. This seemed to attract even more attention from Jareth and she nervously cleared her throat, "Ah, thanks… Jareth." As his brow shot up in mild surprise she started backing away, letting the words tumble from her mouth, "Well, better get going… I have a maze to solve… Again." She saw a flicker of sadness in his eyes before the same indifference she had come to know so well replaced any emotion on his face.

"Very well, Sarah. I will leave you to it. Good luck." A final bow and he was gone, seeming to morph into some form of glitter that was carried away by a swift wind. Sarah blinked, his sudden departure setting her on an even more state of unease. She turned back onto the path she left behind and walked slowly, shoving her hands in her pants pockets as she lost herself in thought, the wind serenely picking up leaves and swirling them about behind her.

Another two hours later Sarah was in a different part of the maze, an absurd blend of the bog and some sort of ivy infested maze. She sighed and glanced upwards at the sky, streaks of purple, pink and yellow offering themselves for her viewing pleasure. It had been hours since she last saw any type of living creature and as she kicked the soggy dirt, she could understand why. This place was absolutely uninhabitable. Another sigh escaped her lips as she kept on, dodging random spits and sinkholes, including the ivy that seemed desperate to latch onto anything its leafy tendrils could grasp. She shuddered as she remembered a certain encounter with the ivy earlier and fought against the memory, losing the battle easily.

She had been walking along, minding her own business when she felt something pulling at her hair from behind. She hissed as it pulled mercilessly, her hands reaching back blindly to unwind whatever it was from being tangled within her hair and her eyes widened as it snapped at her fingers, creating a small cut on each finger in a neat little row. She pulled her hand away, hissing as the pain managed to temporarily blind her. She fought against the hold but more tendrils of the vine wrapped neatly around her arms, pulling her back to the wall of ivy. Soon enough she was covered in the ivy and the vines yanked her roughly against the wall, making her cry out and lose her breath from the contact of her body hitting the stone. Stars swam before her vision and she bit her lip, hissing as a tendril scraped across the skin of her abdomen, creating an incision. She fought against the ivy with all her strength and managed to find a knife within the surrounding vines and with a cry akin to one shouted during battle, she sliced through the stubborn ivy, slowly cutting herself free from their restrictive embrace. Finally, she broke free, stumbling away from the vines and landing hard on the boggy floor, gasping for breath.

She looked down at her now bandaged abdomen, a strip of her shirt that she had torn off when no other option was available. She pushed the pain to the back of her mind, refusing to even acknowledge the sensation as her determination won out over all feeling, letting her continue onwards without even a slight change in her footsteps. Eyebrow drawn low over her eyes, Sarah let out a small sigh of frustration and picked up to a jogging speed, her breath coming in even puffs as she practically ran through the area, ducking under low dead branches and moss-like substances that she didn't even want to know what they were made of. As she wound her way around a rather impressive looking tree, she could not help but hum a song that seemed to suit her determination quite well, the words adding fuel to her soul, making her more willing to keep going.

Long lost words whisper slowly to me 

_Still can't find what keeps me here_

_When all this time I've been so hollow inside_

_I know you're still there…_

She let out a grunt as she jumped over a fallen log and rolled once she hit the ground, springing back up and jogging once more, the words laying out before her eyes and creating a path for her to follow blindly.

Watching me, wanting me 

_I can feel you pull me down_

_Fearing you, loving you_

_I won't let you pull me down…_

Jareth watched with undivided attention the images within the crystal in his palm, his own thoughts seeming to mingle in with the song playing within Sarah's mind as if the two of them wrote it, weaving it together like some kind of enchanting spell to ensnare the senses.

_Hunting you I can smell you- Alive_

_Your heart pounding in my head…_

Panting, Sarah ran full tilt through a straight pathway that never seemed to end, hair floating behind her like a silken scarf blowing in the wind. Soon enough she came to a door that was slowly closing, and with a determined cry, she slammed against it, putting all of her weight into it to keep it open. It fell under her weight without any hint of defiance and she stumbled to the dirt, gasping for breath. The door slid to an ominous close behind her, the sound of a lock being placed vaguely reaching her ears. She flipped wearily onto her back, her chest heaving with each breath as she closed her eyes, willing her heart to slow once again back to normal.

After being slightly rested, she slowly sat up, wincing as muscles in her entire body protested at the movement. She slowly got to her feet and looked around, noticing to her dismay that she had somehow gone in one big circle and ended up in the hedge maze once again. Letting out a cry of frustration she continued onwards, not even bothering to look up. If she had, she would have noticed the castle looming not even that far away, the goblin city lying just beyond the exit of the hedge maze.

Sitting next to a fountain, Sarah lay resting, gazing idly into the crystal clear water. Mind blank, she merely stared at it, watching as tiny specs in the bottom sparkled in the sunlight. Sarah blinked, her curiosity setting in. She moved into a kneeling position and brought her face closer to the water, trying to see exactly what it was on the bottom that was causing it to sparkle. Hesitantly, she brought her uninjured hand to the surface of the clear liquid, and with a small breath, submerged her hand. The water felt unbelievably cool and wonderful to the touch that she let out a heavy sigh of approval, letting the water cool her overheated skin. Then, as if remembering why she stuck her hand in the first place, she reached down to the suddenly deep bottom, submerging over half of her arm to do so. She grabbed what felt like a rock and pulled it upwards, bringing it out of the water to inspect it closer. It was a crystal of some sort; oval and shimmering from the inside it seemed. She turned it in a different direction, noticing the light within changing to a lavender hue.

"Hey!"

Startled, Sarah dropped the crystal back into the water, turning her head quickly to the creature that just spoke. A hybrid of a faerie and a mermaid the size of an ostrich egg fluttered not even five feet away from her, crossing its arms and scowling deeply at her. "Don't you know not to touch someone's treasure?!"

Mouth open, Sarah stuttered, "Oh! I… I'm sorry, I didn't know…"

The mer-faerie huffed, squeaking, "Uh-huh sure! You humans do whatever you like, whenever you want! Doesn't matter if it's not yours, does it?! I should teach you a lesson to touch someone else's things!" With a snarl, the faerie charged Sarah, pushing the poor girl. Sarah toppled backwards into the water with a big splash, arms flailing. She came to the surface and sputtered, grabbing the edge of the fountain and clinging onto it for dear life as the bottom dropped out beneath her, becoming more of a large pool than a small fountain. Managing to climb out, she lay sprawled on the grass, sopping wet and breathing heavily, absently wondering to herself if she could possibly get in any more trouble while being here. As she looked about, she saw the mer-faerie dive into the fountain, out of sight. Sarah laid her head back on the ground, closing her eyes momentarily.

After regaining her breath, she got up once again, grimacing as she squeezed the excess water out of her hair and clothing. Slowly she continued onwards, physically drained. After taking turn after turn, she halted in her steps, mouth agape as she stared before her. There, in all its glory, was the Goblin City.

Hehehe. I believe I am getting much better at these cliffies, no? I just had to be evil and leave it there. Makes the next chapter worth reading, don't you think so? Heh. Review!

-Niffers


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